Uttarakhand, the northern state of India is renowned for its pilgrimage sites and often referred as the ‘land of Gods’. Madhyamaheshwar is one such highly revered Hindu Temples. Devoted to Lord Shiva, it is situated in Mansoona village of Garhwal Himalayas at a height of 3,497 m (11,473.1 ft). It is part of the Panch Kedar pilgrimage lap, comprising of five Shiva temples in the Garhwal region.
With pilgrimage comes the adventure of trekking in Madhyamaheshwar. The temple serves a great trekking site for all the adventure and trek lovers where the trek starts from Uniyana following the steps of Bansi, meadows of Gounders, Bantoli, Nanur and then finally reaching the destination Madhyameshwar. The temple is located in a green valley surrounded by Panpatia Glacier and Chowkhamba Peak which is enough to spellbind you with its beauty. The other encircling snow peaks are Neel Kanth and Kedarnath in high Himalayan hill ranges. These give a spectacular view of the mountain formation with a number of glaciers which include the source of the Mandakini River. The rich biosphere with beautiful plants and flowers and particularly the jeopardised species of Himalayan monal pheasant will leave you enthralled. The Himalayan Kasturi deer can also be seen in the Kedarnath Wild Life Sanctuary.
The temple has a rich legacy with the Priests coming from South India. They are part of the Lingayat cast and are called Jangamas hailing from Mysore in Karnataka. This initiation of priests from outside the state strengthens the cultural communications from one part of the country to the other, with language becoming no barrier. It is one of the important sacred pilgrimage centres of Shastrik importance categorized as Panchasthali (five places) doctrine. There are two other smaller shrines, one is devoted to Lord Shiva and Devi Parwati and other Ardhanarishvara, which is in the form of half-Shiva half-Parvati. On the right side of the main temple there is a small temple, which is a statue of Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, music, wisdom and art.
The architecture of Madhyameshwar Temple is in the North Indian style comprising of garbhagriha and shikhars. The temple is a small black structure on the peak of the hill, which looks straight on the astounding Chhakma peaks. In the present temple, a navel-shaped Shiva-Lingam, made of black stone, is situated in the sacred place.
The history of the temple is full of mystic charm. When after the war of Mahabharata, Pandavas wanted freedom from their sin of killing their own kith, they went to seek blessings from Lord Shankar on advice of Lord Krishna. But Lord Shankar was in Guptkashi, hiding from Pandavas as he was annoyed with them for killing their own dynasty. When Pandavas reached Guptkashi, Lord Shankar reached Kedarnath where He assumed the form of a bull. Pandavas came to know about Him and to keep Pandavas away from Himself, the Lord tried to bury Himself in the earth. However, Bhima saw Him and tried to pull Him out by the tail. But how would Lord Shankar, the Supreme be taken so easily. He divided his body in various parts sending them in different directions. The upper part of his torso appeared in Kathmandu, arms in Tungnath, mouth in Rudranath, navel in Madhyameshwar, hair in Kalpeshwar while the back of the Bull, the hump was left in Kedarnath. Therefore, in each of these places, Lord Shankar is worshipped. The five places near Kedarnath are called the Panch Kedars. Shri Madhyamaheshwar is one of them.
The land of Shiva is surely a delight for all the pilgrimage and trekking lovers. The beauty and serenity of this place will surely surprise you and comfort your eyes in a way that you'll be short of words.
